Outfits

I just love trends! Is there anything more satisfying than a new season full of fresh garms to discover? The promise of unearthing a favourite new staple or cultivating the perfect head to toe look is what makes me dive into a stack of magazines, pages of the latest fashion weeks' street style, and of course hunting around the shops. Even before I started my blog ten years ago, it's what I've always loved to do! Working in retail makes this habit my day job too, so I never really stop thinking about what people are currently buying.

It's a delight to be part of The Gracechurch Centre's summer campaign, Fashion in the Frame. Store windows are being graced with a new trend each week and when you snap and share your favourite on social media, you could win it! This week's trend is Pretty Western, and I'd bet this is the biggest hit on the high street this season. Gingham? Check. Embroidery? Check. Embellished denim? Check! It was not hard to hit the shops and peruse so many cute items with a western twist right now.

However I chanced upon this yellow prairie dress in Marks and Spencer, displayed on their campaign model in all its sunny glory. How beautiful is this colour! Complete with tassels and tiers, I was all over this buttercup beauty. It also left the trend open to a gorgeous embroidered bag or pair of heels - or both! These River Island sandals are undoubtedly the shoe of the season, with a perfect block heel and bold florals across the sole and straps too. How good would these look with a pair of frayed hem jeans or gingham smock dress? The New Look clutch was another dose of punchy florals in orange, pink and blue, picking out the yellow of the dress with a burst of flowers and leaves. Such a pretty way to nod to the trend but also chance to accompany just about every outfit this summer with this bag of applique dreams.

Have fun checking out the framed outfits at The Gracechurch Centre and good luck with the competition!

On the weekend I took part in a fabulous fashion whirlwind! Touchwood Solihull invited me to appear at their spring fashion event to showcase the looks of the season. I consider pondering the latest trends as a full time hobby so this delightful opportunity meant mixing my two favourite things - shopping and chatting.

To help visitors own their style, there was a genius style cube that asked a series of questions about your life and wardrobe. A handy card popped out to reveal a trend perfect for you, plus some sweet shopping discounts. That's when I stepped in to show off my rail of glorious pieces from Topshop, Zara, River Island and more, mixing looks and matching shoppers with their new favourite items. Some cheeky £50 vouchers were also popping out to treat unsuspecting participants, and it felt rather fabulous to shower lucky shoppers with prizes!

The event host, Hannah, was a gorgeous ray of sunshine and it felt like we were having a chit chat all day as we projected style tips across the shopping centre. I met loads of cool gals - shout out to awesome budding fashionista Evie! The prize winners were returning across the day to show us what they had purchased with their winnings. It was like we were hosting a fashion club!

My favourite trends this season are Pretty in Pink, as how did I not know it's a fantastic colour for redheads, and Go Big or Go Home. Seriously: the bigger the sleeves, the better this season! We also showcased Vibrant Stripes, ranging from pin stripe to bold colour blocking; Statement Slogans, with a side of sass; 80's Glam in all it's glory; and Athletic Angel, possibly the most practical yet impactful trend of them all.

The style cube is at Touchwood until 7th April so don't miss the chance for discounts and trend advice!

Hi guys! I have returned from my holiday and the majority of it took a very unexpected turn which I will reveal to you in due course in an excessively detailed, epic post series. You know how it goes! For the first few blissful days I did an Instagram takeover with Swimwear365 and they transformed my suitcase with some gorgeous pieces to pack. Here's the low down on the items I chose and a taste of the dreamy Abu Dhabi days...

Winter sun is just a plane ride away and glistening waves, clear skies and white sands await. As you know, this November I ditched my evenings usually spent blogging behind my laptop, clutching a steaming cup of tea and wrapped in layers of blankets, for a weekend of sun, sea and sports cars in Abu Dhabi. With a huge range of beautiful S365 swimwear and beach accessories at my fingertips, why reserve your sunny getaways for just the summer months? Hitting the beach in the winter time is a fabulous chance to indulge in the warm weather when you're craving it the most and it's even more satisfying to soak up some much needed sunshine, plus post a few stand out Instagram snaps.

With the F1 races in the evenings, Abu Dhabi is actually stunning destination full of surprises. Armed with gorgeous bikinis and maxi dresses, a short speed boat ride from Al Reem Island took us to a secluded party island with a beautiful palm tree lined beach on one side and a huge pool complete with DJ and water bar on the other. As it was race weekend, the beats were pumping and the pool was packed with dancing crowds, and with a cocktail in hand I felt amazing in my s.Oliver bikini. The pretty gold beading added a touch of glam and the gorgeous aztec print gave an eye-catching twist. Colourful beachwear really sets off a background of white sand, and the next morning we chilled at our apartment pool, myself in the golden Kangaroos triangle bikini with these exotic sunset hues or red, orange and yellow.

Before the final F1 race on the Sunday, we relaxed at the beach club one last time, grabbing a bite to eat in my beautiful blue paisley maxi dress. The colours pop dramatically on the bold white background and it's the perfect cover up to take you from the beach to restaurant. With rich history, huge skyscrapers and fast cars, you may think Abu Dhabi stops at the luxurious offerings, but with private beaches, party islands and rooftop pools, there is much more to this Eastern paradise. Let's raise a cocktail to winter sun with S365!

I was sponsored to take over the @swimwear365 account, where I chose the pieces myself and <3 <3 <3 them all - thank you S365!

Boohoo set me a challenge to choose a celebrity icon and pick a favourite look to recreate. This was a task I could certainly taken on but who to choose? Who do I look towards? Well in truth, the styles I stalk are those of my favourite bloggers, vloggers, and Instafamous gals. Sometimes I'm blown away by how these people can look so damn put together every other day but when you have the incentive of being a full time blogger or in a career that gives free self-expression, you do live for what you wear. When I used to work in fashion we could literally wear absolutely anything, from tiny crop tops to mesh to bodycon, whereas now I can't even show my upper arms! So I live vicariously through my favourite Instagram accounts on a daily basis as I commute in my office attire, and the weekend is my time to break free. I went through a phase of stepping out of the fashion leagues and buying a few things I really loved, but accepting that no matter how many fashion purchases I made, I'd never have chance to wear them! However I've slowly learnt to find joy in the clothes I buy for work and home in on buying some fierce weekend-wear, so every time Saturday rolls around, my only option is to dress in something damn fine.

Weekend evenings have never let me down though, and over the past year or so my hem lines have came down but my desire to wear something a little bit different has increased. And so enters some of my favourite Instagrammers (style wise that is, I follow a million people I love) who I often stalk, of course, but also pick out just why they look so good. It's the super curly hair, statement curves or the man-repeller heels (although I'm not 100% sold on that term as any man who passes comment on your style should always be repelled),

I hope you can discover a few of the girls above for flawless, endless inspiration! As for myself, I have been stalking the boohoo Kirsty-Ann dress for multiple weeks and it came out in this berry red shade. Gorgeous! I teamed it with super dark lips, lace up heels and a top tail, but I'm thinking next time it could even be added to knee high cage heels or slicked back hair. It's carefully concocting a recipe of different style elements that might be slightly off the radar but somehow clash in a good way, and committing. I'm still getting back into my stride but I have booked another holiday destination - I swear I save £££ by having my job as my boyfriend - and I've stashed away so many things from the boohoo summer sale including maxi dresses, kimonos and boohoo Night dresses like these. Watch this space!

It's so exciting to share this post! In the history of my blog, which is eight years old now (woah), I don't think I've ever had any professional, high quality photos to share with you readers that keep me tapping away at my keyboard year after year. Back in the day, blogging was purely an unheard of peek into a stranger's wardrobe, whereas now it's an editorial feast of content and collaborations. I'm never going to be a camera whizz although I do take some photos for work, but I'm better at reviving a photo through heavy editing rather than capturing a desired shot. Not that that would matter as a blogger as it has to be other people behind the lens, and that's usually my mom during an odd weekend! Working full time means I know I wouldn't get the use out of a snazzy camera sadly so I potter on with what I have.

A few weeks ago local photographer Emma Christina got in touch to see if we could work together to shoot some looks for her portfolio and for my blog. Yes please! I was chuffed to have a chance to post some really fantastic shots where you can see my outfit properly and I can really get down to explaining why the devil I'm wearing what I am.

Emma was absolutely lovely and we had such a fun time chatting and then taking photos around Birmingham. I brought a bunch of outfits and tottered to different 'typical' blogger settings. We actually stumbled across the amazing car by chance and tentatively took some photos while looking out for any approaching owners! I didn't have any qualms even though a few passers-by were watching us - I just pretended in my mind that I was a model on a real shoot! Emma was so slick and encouraging too and I felt really at ease, and these photos look more like Made in Chelsea than made in Birmingham! I'm so pleased, imagine if all my posts were like this! Maybe I need a photographer boyfriend ASAP.

Onto the outfit, and how could I not wear these new purchases as my favourite ever trend comes into play this season! This outfit is literally my soul breaking free from a life of office wear. If I could step aside from the daily grind and just live day-to-day wearing exactly what I could - and still hold down a job - it would be this! I watched the movie Dazed and Confused just about a million times when I was a teenager and bell bottoms are the most comfortable yet confident thing to wear. I bought this Missguided pair as soon as I saw the perfectly executed print and they are so high waisted that even the shorter crop top will suit. I found this cute crochet crop top in Primark of all places and I like how it steps away from the '90s crop trend.

Thank you again Emma, this is the best post ever! I'll be saving this outfit for a certain trip next month though - I'm going to New York!!! Good bye life savings, hello life long dream. I'll save that for another post though - watch this space.

I've been having a rather interesting afternoon checking out this glorious hair tong that popped through my post box this week! Wider stylers are just not my bag as my hair has such a dry texture that it won't ever sit softly; it always has to be set in quite a tight curl. I would never brush out my curls either as that equals frizz-galore! So a new version of the conical wand definitely intrigued me as this Babyliss Diamond Waves offering promises shiny,sleek hair to tame any fuzz. The test begins!

The bubble wand means it creates not just curls but waves too, so the final result won't be a uniform row of spirals but a more assorted style of different curls. When I curled my hair after blow drying, I realised it creates the type of curl that you get when you use a hair straightener; it's not spiral, even curls but a naturally wavy curl with texture. The curls look great when started half way down your hair too, rather than a traditional wand that does look like a slightly more unnatural tube curl.

It's also that slick ceramic texture that adds even more shine, meaning you can pull your hair taught against the wand, rather than dragging and pulling it through straighteners. The temperature is 210 degrees too with the option of different settings (and heats up in 40 seconds - perfect for 7am pre-work styling!), so you get the power of straighteners. I don't think many people know you can get sleek results from a tong as you can tightly smooth your hair around the wand. I've seen people straighten their hair and then curl it back up, which you don't need to do! This isn't advertised with the wand but I also found it was super light; perfect for holiday packing.

With my frizz tamed today, I celebrated Mother's Day a day early with my family as my friend's wedding is tomorrow - my Athen's vlog is uploading as I type! Here's a quick OOTD I managed to persuade my brother to take, avec my Diamond Waves!

Happy Monday all! I have a disjointed week as I have some work events and one part of tomorrow is a visit to the Sea Life Centre aquarium! I visited for the launch of their penguin attraction through work too but I am rather excited to go to the depths of the sea again, even though the shark tunnel is so freaky! This early end to the day also gives me chance to get my nails and brows done straight after, which I usually only have Saturdays as my window to do so.

I wanted to tell you about a recent bargain of an outfit and share a few money saving tips. For the past few years I have really homed in the way I spend my money and do live quite frugally. I know what it's like to be the blogger to impose those month-long no spending bans and 'must use up all of my products' resolutions, but essentially it does not work. I suppose it's a bit like dieting, where you can't actually make a lifelong change if you only make temporary, radical plans.

My main prerogative style-wise at the moment is having an inspirational and forward-thinking look in mind, and reminding myself of that when I go shopping. You can see from my Tumblr it's a mix between Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner really! When I find myself pondering over a bracelet on a sale rack or walking into Topshop and being hit with so many trends I am so not up to date with, I remember my inspirational themes and know I am focusing towards my own look.

This also helps when it comes to sales, discounts and flash offers. When a brand emails you a coupon code, you should only need to check out the store to see if something you were about to purchase anyway is in the deal. This is my bugbear with loyalty points cards - you have to spend money to 'save' money! You don't actually make any money so you almost 'fail' if you don't spend! It's better to not spend anything than make back a few pennies.

Alas I frustrate myself because we are all working or studying to be able to buy ourselves lovely things, treats experiences anyway, so by all means you should spend how you wish. However if you are spending yourself into debt or using shopping as a way to cure self esteem or fill a gap, you'll always be going around in circles of guilt. You want to be able to spend without the guilt! Just being conscious of this can help you control your spending more and allow you to still be frivolous in fun and non-detrimental ways.

Recently I practiced this when finding some total bargains to fill gaps in my wardrobe. I have two pencil skirts which I have worn to death so needed a little wardrobe injection to be able to mix and match a few new outfits. It was around the time of Black Friday sales which I avoided as I wasn't planning on buying anything at the time, but I saw on Facebook that Missguided were throwing a £5 sale from 10am - 12pm on the Sunday morning. I scooped up six items including some Christmas stocking fillers and this khaki set. I haven't worn the top and skirt together yet but it is such a chic yet different outfit, and I've worn the skirt twice already. The rouched material is so unique and it has a flattering sheen.

On the pictured night, I went for drinks with friends and it was a rather chilly night, so I wore this roll neck top I got for £3 in Lidl. Seriously! I go food shopping there because they have such a good selection of veg and fresh fish, and they often have a menagerie of random homewear and sometimes a few clothing items. This turtle neck was just touted as a 'ladies top' in a wrapper with a cheesy stock photo and unlike the skimpy, cropped ones on the highstreet, this one is a soft, opaque fabric with a truly chunky roll neck and decent length. I tucked it into the skirt and voila, you would never know it was from Lidl! I can even wear this for work. The further £8 was spent on some New Look heels I got a while ago in their sale. I always find New Look have great shoes that you never notice or aren't available everywhere, so it's effective to browse all of the odd shoes on the shelves of their sales and unearth treasures.

It does make me wince that some shops now sell 'going out' outfits for £100+ when a lot of us don't want to wear the exact same outfit twice; especially a statement one. I never used to mix and match but now I get full use out of my separates. I also included the outfit in a vlog which was really funny to watch when editing as believe it or not, the graffiti background walls were in front of the toilets of a bar, and every time a dude came out of the men's loos, my friend turned the camera on them and so I've got loads of footage of men looking really taken aback and walking away really confused! It sounds ridiculous but there is nothing like being silly with your friends.

Hi guys, little time no speak! I took these photos (well, my brother did) last week and I don't usually like racking up posts, but I am indeed still wearing this whole outfit whenever I am free. Come the weekend, I actually feel like a different person. It could be all psychological or due to office bathroom lighting, but I almost feel like I look totally different by Saturday morning. I don't splash out on the weekend, but I do feel like I look a million bucks better! Weekend millionaire indeed. Office wear is just never going to be my thing.

This outfit is my AW staple because of the two key elements:

1. The khaki shirt - There's something about khaki green that fits so well with all of the camel colours this season but is still a little beat up and boyish. Teaming a military shirt with curve-hugging jeans, a pencil skirt or a slick bun creates a contrast that adds a sexy vibe to normcore; the whole subtle, classic, solid trend of the moment. This New Look shirt has just enough of a casual vibe due to the material but the slim fit and neat pockets can keep it sophisticated.

2. The ripped skinnies - I've been eyeing my favourite high waisted jeans sitting in my wardrobe and contemplating the scissors. But once you chop, there is no going back and I just could not bring myself to! So I invested in the Topshop Jamie Jean as my winter weekend purchase, and I like the sturdiness of the pockets and studs as a change to my jegging-like Joni Jean or River Island Tube Pants. Ripped knees just add another sexy skin flash while being tough and effortless. I have actually turned a corner with my weekend nightlife too and now actually hit the town in jeans, half because you can dress up jeans in a chic way now, and half because some nights are not worth donning a bodycon mini skirt when you have gossiping with your friends to do! I feel just as happy in what I deem as 'casual' wear now as I did in my party dresses of my Motel days. One could argue my super-tight jeans are a version of bodycon, and I still add my tan, lashes, and killer heels, but I'm cool with that haha.

Well hello there! I hope you are all very well and really getting into gear for autumn. I'm still sorting my coat (I'm stalking ASOS for a discount code!!) but am feeling excited for warm drinks and Christmas time. I rounded off the summer with my trip to Milan and it was a whirlwind of a weekend! We literally didn't stop to take a breath and it went so quickly, but I did manage to record a vlog below! The first night consisted just of a night out as we sped through East Midlands airport, applied our makeup on the £19.99 RyanAir flight, and drank beer on the coach to join our London friends at the apartments for around 10pm.

Our friends had been there since the early hours so we met them at a bar and rushed to get ready to hit the first super club called Alcatraz, which literally had suspended cages with topless dancers and about 3,000 students. Sadly I am so far from being a student that the sweaty, packed out bars and swaying teenagers meant it was not a place to meet an Italian stallion or have a fashionable cocktail. Milan itself is rather similar to Birmingham in being very industrial and grey, brightened by scrawled graffiti. We danced the whole night away and while we definitely weren't drunk enough to be in a student club, it played some fun stuff and there was a hip hop dance off and a huge stage!

I brought a variety of slightly new-ish outfits and wasn't too sure where we would go for the following nights, so I went for two separates instead of a dress, which to me seems less formal. This outfit is totally dressy but in my eyes, a dress would be even more so!

This navy Topshop bralet has really seem me through 2014 and goes with every skirt or bottoms possible. I bought this white skirt in the summer from Missguided on an impulse really as it's not the most wearable thing but it does brighten a look. I don't think black suits me as much anymore so white is a fresh alternative. These Choies shoes are not the most comfortable but they aren't too bad and I love love love how they add an extra spice to any outfit.

I also have blue in my hair! I bought some of that fancy dress hairspray colour in blue and it made my hair super crunchy but lasted all holiday and kept my curls in place! Very Kylie Jenner inspired. I wonder if I could get away with it for work...

And onto the next morning, and out first day! I woke up with a heavy head and was quite surprised the 10 euro Long Island Ice Teas were that brutal, but we soon realised we all felt very groggy because in Italy you can smoke in the clubs, and none of us are smokers! When I first started clubbing it was legal in the UK too, so the memories of coming home with your clothes and hair stinking of stale smoke were not very welcome again, and despite definitely not smoking myself, I could almost taste cigarettes for the whole holiday.

We gathered the troops and went in search for our first pizza, which was harder than you would think as we were surrounded by the curse of the tourist restaurants. You know the ones with the photos of the food and laminated menus? Even in the back streets of our apartment block, we searched for a while to come across a stone baked pizzeria and took the first bite of fresh Italian pizza, mmmm!

I'm usually the organiser for the trip but this time I sat back and followed the flow of the group. I'm not sure where our apartments were but my bed sat high up a spiral staircase on a ledge, so we were almost all in the same room, but not quite! Very cool! The other gals had visited the main Milan sights the day before so we navigated our way onto the train to Lake Como, around an hour away. The steep mountains and beautiful clear water lake actually extends for miles and miles, and we marvelled at the high hills and gorgeous views.

We jumped into a few pedalos to appreciate the water but these clunky old boats really didn't go very far, and we were pedalling like crazy and not going anywhere! It may have been our imagination but we bobbed around for ages and even watched some little kids whizz past us, and some Italian boys who rode past staring with one randomly wearing a creepy surgical mask, before shouting 'We love English!!!' at us! I've never laughed so much and you can catch a glimpse in my vlog below.

We managed to make our way to shore after narrowly avoiding a huge, speedy cruise ship, and took a vertical tram high up into the hills. The view was obscured by fog but we travelled back and had a sweet meal at an outdoor restaurant, where the waiter nearly set himself on fire when torching my creme brulee.

We soon realised time was ticking on fast as we finished our meal in the dark and headed off to find the train station. We ran Rocky-style up huge marble stairs but we had missed the train anyway, so grabbed some drinks for the next one from a supermarket. It was only an hour later when we reached the Milan central station that we realised the train conductor had been sitting in our carriage all along and possibly heard all of our X-rated gossiping!

We didn't actually get back to our apartment until midnight! This is even despite the mental Italian taxi drivers. We booked a taxi for 45 minutes later and literally threw on some makeup and clothes. I was going to wear this Missguided nude skirt again with a mis-matching crop top but the matchy-matchy thing just does it for me, and I love the shape of this crop top. I did feel a little naked in this outfit, but the tan colour and suede-esque fabric is so sophisticated, and I wanted to toughen up the look with some chunky leather sandals. I also added a deep red lip as I didn't get chance to wear false lashes, and it makes a statement when time is tight!

We had researched online and read that Hollywood was the top Milan club for 'supermodels, politicians and footballers'. Well we definitely picked the wrong night as it was again a sweaty student party, and after the 25 euro entrance fee, we thought we would find more than one packed out basement room! We navigated to a space to breathe in front of the VIP section (which cost 280 euros to enter!) and took many selfie stick photos, before attempting to buy a drink at the rammed bar and realising the mirror in the girls bathroom was actually clear right through to the boys bathroom! I didn't twig until I looked a little closer at my supposed reflection and also realised a girl next to me was arguing with her boyfriend through the mirror. Wild! We left the club and were about to visit another but they all had 15+ euro entry, so we got pizza and took our tired feet home!

The Sunday was the final day for the London girls, but myself and another friend were staying one more day. We took the metro to the centre and ate more pizza, visited Sephora, and roamed a castle. The day again went so quickly as it took a long while to navigate the tube, and at one point I got lost/kidnapped!! A tassle on my kimono got caught on a man's butt button hole and I was the last to step off the metro, so my one friend spotted me and frantically tried to keep the metro doors open, while I tried to yank off the tassle and an Italian woman intervened and tried to untangle the button. Soon enough, the metro doors had to close shut, the tram departed, and I was carried away from my friends into a dark tunnel with a tube of people laughing at me! After a few moments the man was set free and I stood alone on the travelling tube, looking around on my lonesome! I did just step off at the next stop and caught an oncoming tube back in the opposite direction, but it will still always be known as the time I got lost in Milan!

More ice cream later (thank you to blogger babe Sandra for the top Milan tips!!) and we had to say goodbye to the London girls, who were super inspirational and generally totally awesome. My friends are very career-driven and it really inspired me to lean in and push forward to achieve what I want to. It was then time for just my home girl and myself to get our Sunday night wear together at our new hotel, which for me was a Zara silk plunge top and new ripped Topshop Jamie jeans, which I had been wearing all holiday. These with my Choies lace up heels felt dressy but still casual, and we took the metro to the Navigli canal area for dinner and drinks. I'm secretly one of those people that strange things just happen to, and I never expect to go anywhere without coming home with a story. I don't think my mojo is going anywhere because we met some business men visting Milan for a vending machine conference, took them to a bar known for dancing on the tables, and tried a lot of red wine, before bumping into an American basketball team who could be world famous for all I know, until one of them asked us to name a price for him to spend the night with us, and we left pretty sharpish rather horrified! Girls - no night with the rich and/or famous is worth your dignity or nude pictures posted all over the internet. Run away!

And so we awoke to the check out time of our hotel being five minutes ago, and with a few more sights to see such as the Duomo above. As we were in the central station with our suitcases, some men did try to 'help' us buy our metro tickets and generally confuse us, until we said NO very firmly and I grabbed my euro from his hand. Be VERY careful when travelling of those who will distract your attention and act bizarrely so your guard is down. They can easily rob you, or their nearby friend can, before you know what's going on.

One airport McDonalds later and we were home from our Italian adventure! I think Milan is certainly a two day city and was SO EXPENSIVE, but we let our hair down and had so much fun discovering Milano. It's also worth noting I could see over the heads of almost everyone in the club but I still have a soft spot for those pint-sized Italians and their crazy driving. I also vlogged the experience, which was my first time vlogging and my first video in a looooong time. As my photography skills are non existant, I wanted to show you all my trip in real-time and take you along with me! Enjoy!

I've finally got iCloud on my laptop so yes, I have been living in the stone age! But this does mean I can grab photos from my phone easily and share them - sweet! Indeed I don't have much time to be a technical guru, hence why I've never invested in a fancy camera or got all snazzy with my old YouTube channel editing. I'm quite a private person so as internet fame can grow so huge now, I just want to talk to the like-minded gals out there and chat about outfits and being 25! Alas I can never go back to the days when I first started my blog and the blogging world was such a tiny, scattered community, but I did just read a few of my oooold (circa 2008) blog posts and have felt all nostalgic! If only I could rewind back and relive the fun.

Anyhow, random exert aside! I must remember I am now a working woman striving towards the next steps on the career and life ladder (or jungle gym as Sheryl Sandberg would say), and I'm riding a shift from those little party dresses to something a big more sophisticated. Fashion is going this way at the moment anyway, as bandage dresses make way for ankle length pencil skirts (I'm looking at you Kim K - where can I buy one?!), but I'm trying to channel a little more business bitch/classy/sassy into my life. I still feel like I have to make an effort to feel a little more sophis rather than just waking up like that, but does anyone really wake up looking their ultimate?!

This Missguided Berryana skirt caught my eye right away, which wasn't hard as I literally visit that site every day. It's like my lunchtime commencing ritual. I've been mostly wearing midi dresses for nights out this year and pencil skirts would be right up my street if there were more out there in any material but polyester-stretch. I'm also quite full in the hip/bum area so it can be tricky to find one that fits. Don't even get me started on trying to find slim fitting work trousers!

I first bought the nude colour of the skirt and it is truly a gorgeous camel colour. I wore it to a 'casual' night with a friend where we drank many cocktails at a cool bar, ended up at a '90s r'n'b night we vowed not to go to, and ended up at an underground reggae club. I'm not about to now say 'and it was the perfect outfit!' because I dont't think there is a perfect outfit for that varied night, but it was awesome and felt quite nice to be wearing something I deemed quite laid back as it was essentially a plain skirt with a £4 H&M top I bought for the gym! I can see this outfit really isn't laid back but hey, it is slightly!

This week I also ordered the black and the red versions, but the red looked too much like velvet and somehow I don't think black really does a lot for me now my hair is lighter. I almost forgot, I also ordered the matching top to the nude skirt, which has such a gorgeous halter neck shape. I haven't tried the set on together as it may be a little too much of one thing, but the top is lovely in itself and will look fab with high waist jeans. I really have the urge to slash and rip the knees of all of my jeans, eeek!

I also adopted a berry lip that night, which was Rimmel Addiction lip liner - a very brown, rich nude, leaning toward the warm mauve side, and MAC Diva lipstick, which is a deep plum. At one point it smudged everywhere and almost looked like I had cried a tear of lipstick (embarrassing!) but overall it stayed put all night and I rather liked wearing such a bold lipstick and feeling very put together. Gosh sometimes I think I look so different from Saturday mornings running my errands with no makeup on, to the base I throw on for work at 7am, to the truckload of products and colours I carefully apply for evenings out!

Sometimes I think is that me, because I look different in each different mirror?! Is that insane? There are some mirrors in my house that always show things in an unflattering light, but some where things are OK! And then I catch myself in a shop mirror and think, did I think I walked out of the house looking like this?! I think the issue is I only have a small vanity mirror in my room and often step out the house without really seeing myself! So sometimes I don't really know what I look like nowadays - does that make sense? Haha this post is all kinds of random :)